JONAH- When You Don't Like God's Plan pt 2 // Wednesday, November 4, 2020
/Wednesday, November 4, 2020
Jonah - When You Don’t Like God’s Plan (Part 2)
What to remember when things don’t go my way:
1. God has better understanding than me.
Jonah 4: 4 (NLT) The Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry about this?”
Job 38: 2 - 4 (NLT) “Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words? 3 Brace yourself like a man, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. 4“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much.
Jonah 4: 5 (NLT) Then Jonah went out to the east side of the city and made a shelter to sit under as he waited to see what would happen to the city.
2. God is good to me even when I have a bad attitude.
Jonah 4: 6 (NLT) And the Lord God arranged for a leafy plant to grow there, and soon it spread its broad leaves over Jonah’s head, shading him from the sun. This eased his discomfort, and Jonah was very grateful for the plant.
3. God is in control.
Jonah 4: 7 & 8 (NLT) But God also arranged for a worm! The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it withered away. 8 And as the sun grew hot, God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on his head until he grew faint and wished to die. “Death is certainly better than living like this!” he exclaimed.
a. God is in the details.
Jonah 4: 9 (NLT) Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry because the plant died?” “Yes,” Jonah retorted, “even angry enough to die!”
4. Focus on the eternal.
Jonah 4: 10 & 11 (NLT) Then the Lord said, “You feel sorry about the plant, though you did nothing to put it there. It came quickly and died quickly. 11 But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?”
2 Corinthians 4: 18 (NLT) So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.